Portable unloading machine



Dec.A 30, 1930. w. K.,l lGGET-r 1,786,665

PORTABLE UNLOADING MACHINE Filed June 8, 1923 nemica ec. 3o, reso PATENT Prie L K. LIGGETT, F COLUMBUS, 0R10, ASSIGNOR-T0 THE JEFFREY MANUFAC- TUB'NG COMPANY, OF COLUMBUS, OHIO, A CQRPORATION 0F OHIO POBTLE UNLOADING MAHENE4 Application iled June 8, 1923. Serial No. MASQ.

rllhe present invention relates to certain new and .useful improvements in portable unloading machines, and particularly to that class of unloading machines which is adapta ed to receive material discharged from any container or receptacle, as, for example, the hopper in the door of a railway car and transfer-it to an elevated discharge point convenient for its delivery to any desired le point, as, for example, to suitably positioned wagons or trucks. l

l am aware that numerous portable con-l veying machines have been proposed which were adapted to be positioned beneath a railway car, to receive material from thehopper in the door of said car. However some of such devices with which l am familiar require the removal of one or more cross ties, the excavation of a pit or trench under the track and the positioning of the conveyer in said pit beneath the track rails. Other devices for doing this rwork are made up of separate conveying and elevating units, which must be independently' positioned, then coupled for operation, and then disconnected for removal.

It is the especial object of this invention to-provide a portable. unloading machine adapted to be conveniently moved from place to place, and to extend above the track rails beneath the hopper 'bottom of a gondola to receive material therefrom and transport it toy an elevated discharge point convenient for its delivery into a suitably positioned wagon or truck. Furthermore, the machine herein disclosed is of the single unit type, inthat its receiving and conveying portion and its elevating portion are permanently connected, and may be positioned and withdrawn without the necessity of disconnecting them. ln the preferred form, and as herein disclosed, a single conveyor element is provided, which effects both the A 5 withdrawing of the material from beneath the car or other receptacle, and also the elevating of the material withdrawn to be delivered ata higher point.

The means whereby l attain this object are fully set. forth in the following specification and illustrated in the accompanying drawings of..which Fig. 1 is a side elevation of the preferred embodiment of my invention.

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the machine illus- 55 trated in Fig. 1.

, Fig. 3 isi a cross section taken along the line III-PHI of Fig. 2.

Fig. i is a longitudinal section taken along the line lV--V of Fig. 2. Fig. 5 is a perspective view showing the operative relation of my improved portable unloading machine with a hopper bottom gondola of the type commonly used for the transportation of coal.

Like numerals refer to similar parts in the several figures.

My improved unloading machine comprises a wheel mounted self-contained conveyer having a horizontal section A adapt- 7o ed to rest upon the rails of a railway track e beneath the discharge hopper in the floor of a gondola, in position to receive material clined channel bars", 2, and to the bars 1 and 2 `is vattached the? transversely extending trough plate 3 which constitutes the bottom 90 of the conveyer trough and is preferably one continuous plate extending from the elevated end of the bars 2 to the forward end of the side sills 1. Fixed to the channel bars 2 at their rearward ends are journal bearings 4 95 in which are journaled the head shaft 5 having sprocket wheels 6 arranged to engage and actuate the material moving element of the conveyer. This material moving element comprises two matched endless chains 7 which 100 Fixed to the head shaft 5 is a sprocket wheel 12 connected by the endless driving chain 13 with the sprocket wheel 14 mounted upon the ower shaft 15. A suitable friction clutch 16 1s arranged to connect the sprocket wheel 14 with said power shaft,and. arcontrolling rod 17 extending transversely of the machine aiords f convenient means accessible from either side of the machine for the operation of said friction clutch. The power shaft 1b is connected by the gears 18 and 19 with a motor 20 mounted upon the platform 21 which is supported on that horizontal rearward extension of the main frame which extends beneath the inclined bars 2 constituting thel inclined conveyor frame. The motor 20 may be of any preferred type suitable to the conditions under which the machine operates. For purposes of illustration I lhave shown an electric motor provided with a controlling switch 22 yand arranged to receive its actuating current through a flexible conductor cable 23 from any convenient source of'electric supply, but as these` devices are well understood in the art and form no part of the presentfinvention, further description is not thought to be required at this time.

Attached to the machine frame adjacent its center of gravity to'properly balance the supported parts is a transversely extending axle 24 having ground engaging wheels 25 upon which the machine is supported, and upon which it may b e conveniently moved from one working place to another.

The channel bars 1 constitute the sides of the conveyer trough, and they are of such vertical dimensions that the horizontal sec.

tion A of the conveyerY may bev inserted between the Yto s ofthe track rails' 26 and the bottom of the opper 27 of a gondola, while they afford suiiclent stiffness to support the material discharged from said hopper with? out material deflecting. When the discharge gte of the lmpper 27 is o ened, material om the gondola falls direct yupon the conveyer, and at such times the entirelength of the horizontal portion A is buried beneath amass extending to the top of the car. The weight of material thus bearing directly upon the trough tends to choke the conveyer and subject the chains 7 to excessive strain. To relieve this strain, and prevent'the destruction of the material moving elements of the conveyer, I have provided shield plates 28 attached to the channel bars 1 and extending increasing capacity of which permits -material to be dragged from the mass without excessive strain upon the conveyer chains. It will be observed from Figure 5 that when the device is in position, the sides 30 of the elevating conveyor. are extended upwardly vertical and can be brought close to`the car and its hop er bottom, the front edges 31 be ing prefera lyinclined, as shown, so as to permit a close relation of the sides of the elevating conveyor to the car. With this arrangement, it will be seen that danger of the material withdrawn from the hopper by the horizontal conveyor portion of the machine escaping at the sides of that conveyor is eliminated, and the upwardly extending sides30 of the elevating portion will confine the Inaterial and direct it to the elevating conveyor.

What I claim is 1. Ih a machineof the class described, the combination of a conveyor trough, means to propel material along said trough, and horizontally disposed rearwardly diverVv 'ng material supporting shields extending inwardly over said trough in close relation to said pro.

pelliigl means.`

2. a machine of the class described, the combination in a self-contained power actu-1 4ated conveyer, .of an elongated flat thin horizontally extending portion adapted to extend across and rest upon the track rails beneath the dischar e hopper of a gondola to receive material t erefrom, an inclined l portion adapted to transportv said material to an elevated discharge point, and horizontal rearwardly diverging shield plates above the horizontal portion of said conveyer and disposed to relieve the conveyer from some of the weight of the material as and for the purpose set forth.

3. In a machine of the class described., the

combination of an elongated frame comprising arallel side sills and a transverselv extending trough plate attached thereto, of material engaging cross bars arranged to travel longitudinally of said trough plate, means to actuate said cross bars, and rearwardly diverging horizontally extending shield plates positioned above and partly shielding said cross bars as and for the purpose Aset forth.

4.' In a machine of the class described, the combination of a trough, means to propel material along said trough, and a horizontally disposed rearwardly diverging material supporting means disposed above the trough.y

5. A self-contained single unit portable unloading machine comprising the combination o if' a horizontal conveyor section including a pair of side rails, a pair of ound enga ing wheels connected to the sida` rails atl su stantially the center of gravity of said machine, an inclined conve or section rigidly secured to the rear end o said horizontal conveyor section, a single endless conveyor trav ersing said horizontal and inclined conveyor sections, the side rails of said horizontal section being extended rearwardly and disposed beneath said inclined section, and a motor for actuating said endless conveyor supported upon said extension of said side rails.

In testimony I have hereunto set my hand.

WILLIAM KELSEY LIGGETT. 

